Australian Pulse Industry has cause to celebrate
As the world wakes up to World Pulse Day today, the Australian Pulse Industry has extra cause to celebrate.
The U.N. Decreed World Pulse Day is celebrated around the world to recognise the role of pulses in providing safe and nutritious food to hundreds of millions of people, as well as acknowledging the invaluable role of Pulses in sustainable farming systems.
Coinciding with World Pulse Day 2020 is the news that Australia will be hosting the Global Pulse Conference in 2021. This annual conference attracts 700-900 leaders of the global pulse industry across all sectors of the value chain, from breeders and farmers through to traders, exporters and processors.
“This is terrific news for the Australian Pulse Industry”, says Nick Goddard, CEO of Pulse Australia. “It will be 11 years since Australia last hosted this event, and since then, the Australian Pulse Industry has only strengthened its position in the global pulse world, as pulses have become more firmly entrenched in the Australian summer and winter cropping cycles. And of course, since then, we have seen the explosive growth of the “Plant Protein” revolution” he said.
To be staged in Sydney, the May 2021 Global Pulse Conference will be one of the stand-out ag and food conferences of the year and will provide a platform for the Australian Pulse industry to shine.
The Australian Pulse Industry has further cause to celebrate today with recent rains in Queensland and northern NSW driving a flurry of planting activity with mungbeans and soybeans, and early indications that these rains will begin to fill the profile for a return to more typical chickpea plantings for winter.
“The Pulse Industry in the north has really felt the brunt of the drought with two consecutive years of little to no summer crop, and winter sown pulse area down significantly”, says Mr Goddard. “It’s early days, but these are certainly positive signs for the coming winter season.”
The general supply shortages in the system have also provided a solid floor to prices, with mungbeans and soybean prices looking to provide solid returns for growers, while chickpea prices remain firm leading into the season.
To cap off World Pulse Day news, on Wednesday this week, Joanne Bills from food consultancy, Freshagenda, will be outlining the key drivers for the burgeoning growth of plant proteins at the World Congress on Oils and Fats, being held in Sydney. The Congress has a day devoted to presentations and discussions related to plant proteins.
“It’s a big week for Pulses and broader plant proteins, as we celebrate ‘World Pulse Day 2020,” says Mr Goddard.
If you really want to get into pulses for World Pulse Day, SBS has prepared a useful guide with tasty recipes, while the Grains and Legume Nutrition Council has prepared a fact sheet on innovative ways to use your legumes, legume research infographic and some tasty recipes.
Media Contact:
Nick Goddard, CEO, Pulse Australia (+61 433 476 622)